Machine for making expanded metal lath



E. S. BRADFORD MACHINE FOR MAKING EXPANDED METAL LATH INVENTOR.

5 Sheets-Sheet 1 ATTORNEY.

Filed Feb. 27, 1924 rehn. 1925. 1,526,769

' E. S. BRADFORD MACHINE FOR MAKING EXPANDED METAL LATH 1924 3 Sheebs-Sheet 2 I N VEN TOR.

Q; r ATTORNEY.

Feb. 17. 1925.

E. 5. BRADFORD MACHINE FOR MAKING EXPANDED METAL LATH Filed Feb. 27, 1924 s Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR.

I ATTORNEY.

Patented Feb. 17, 1925.

SQBRA DFORD, OF LDET'ROITQMICHIGAN.

- MAGH'IKE :FOR MAKING EXPANDED -METAL- LATH.

iApplication filed February 2'7, 1924. Serial Noi 695,417.

lotskilled in-lthe artto which it pertains to make'and usejthe same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of. this specification.

This; invention relatesto machines for slitis tingand expanding metallathand similar sheet metal fabrications, and -haslfor wits objectan irnprovedmnd simplified. organization ofv-parts adaptedto. el'l'ect the cutting of othe longitudinal slitslin the initially plain 20 sheet of metal and the'distortionof the part .lyseparated strands or ribbon lengths, withoutiany such extraneous handl ng or lateral drawing of the sheet as is necessary in many of:themechanismsnnow in use, all or this '25 beingregulatedmand controlled by the posh tioning and arranged sequence of 3 action of the sexpanding i or spreading members, so

-thati the sheet, afterrbeing fed in uncut con- LditioirintO the entering or receiving end of until completely slitted a. and expanded; it

a tlvpi lingzor packing.

In the drawings:

i a members.

lilfligure 2 is -a fplan ,view "of the-fdevice,"

1 L46 bringing \out not only the relative positioningofthe slitting and the expanding memf bers, but as well the sequential 'actionof the slittedi ribbon sections. .45, Figure r y .viewtakenalong the line 3 3"ofF1gu1-e 2,-

designed to bring out. particularly: the posi- Jtioning of the expan'dersv and ofthe feed rollers. I 50 vliigure 4; is a plan view of a small section of a metal sheet in which the slittingenly I has been performed. I

- 95 been completed H Eigure 1 isa side elevational riewof my improved mechanisnnf show ng the. relative" positioning of the cutting-and expanding Figure 6 is a'fragmentary'edge view-of the meeting peripheral portions of thesplitlting rollers, showing, on an enlarged scale, the slightly meshing eharaoterfof their extreme edge ends, due to the alternationand spacing of the discs.

A indicates a frame 'or housing, at -the left of which, 1as' shown 'in Figure'l', there is providedthe guide slit Brfor the insertion of-a sheet of metal Z which it is desired to l fabricate into expanded latlr form. Slight-c 1y interior thereto (further to the right in 'Figures land 2) are located the'advancing rollers C and "D," which are'journaled at Stheir'ends *in the s'ides of the frame A.

Abovethe upper roller C there may be,iit'

desired, an adjusting screw 13, regulating the box bearing" F, by'which adjustments to'coinpensate for Various gages of sheet metal may be made. Further to the right 'is locatedthe"supporting cutter roller G, and above it the'main cutter roller H. This may,'if desired, alsdbe provided with a box bear1ng"F" and-adpisting screw'E,

rollers are, for convenience ot manufaeture and assembling, built upiroman alternats30 the zmechanisnr, needs, no further attention ing series 'of cutter discs and washers. In

rthe case ofthe supporting cutter roller G, a emergesffrom the delivery end rea'dy for" the'p'eripheral "edges of the individual discs g are plain and unintended, whereas in the "case of the'discs constitutingthe-roller H the edges of the. individual discs 72 are notched at' peripheral intervals corresponding to the desired length ofthe slits or strands of metal in the sheet; as brought out by thefdotted line showings at It and '71" in" Figure 1, these are positioned instaggered relation as; arranged uponthe shaft, so J'that the position of-the .notcheskh', in the H expanding members .upon successive rows of first third and fifth *discs, for eXample5 a re peri'pherally" the same, while th t. h 1 or is an enlarged sectional-"plain indentationshe in thesecond; fourth and builtup, the discsare uniformly spaced by the a smaller diametered intermediate wash- 6 1 9 andih Since the peripheral edges-or ":2. tips of the projections between the indentations 72' and ii-extend sufficiently intonthe .Eigure 5 is aYvie-w of a-section "Qflath" lif er 0 h the cuttingiuid expanding have lsheet is to pass between them it'can only-do so by being cut in slits arranged in the alternating relation illustrated in plan view Figure 4.

A complete machine adapted to slit and expand a metal sheet originally of 7 inches in width into acompleted lath construction 2 t inches broad would require fifty-six ribbons or strands, but for compactness of illus tration I have illustrated but four of my chosen expanding members, and have limited the width of the metal strip accordingly, as shown in plan in Figure 2. It is of course obvious that intermediate breadths of sheet metal could be similarly treated by using an intermediate number of cutting and expanding elements.

The advancing and slitting drums or rollers may be actuated in any desired and suitable manner; I have herein shown them and the expanding members hereinafter described as deriving their actuation from the shaft I, on which the disc cutter G is mounted, the gear wheel on the end of the shaft G meshing with correspondingly positioned gears K and L on the end of the shafts K and L. The teeth of the gear wheel L" similarly mesh with the teeth of the nearest one of the gear wheels M, appurtenant to the four feed rollers, M, N, P and Q, the gear wheels R, S and T communicating the desired degree of actuation in timed relation to the more remote ones of the spacing units in a manner that will be obvious from an inspection of Figure 1. The rollers M, N, P and Q all lie below the guide B for the metal sheet, which latter they engage advancingly only along its edges, so as to leave the mesh-forming wheels V, IV, X and Y free to press upon and expand the partly severed strands of their corresponding longitudinal series on the sheet of metal. In other words, as will be obvious from an inspection of the stepped position of the four wheels V, V, X and Y in Figure 2, beginning with the action of the expanding wheel V, which engages the strands at the extreme right-hand edge of the machine, after it has functioned, the next interior strand or ribbon of the sheet, whose cuts are in staggered relation to the first line of cuts, is engaged by the second wheel IV, which, as brought out in side elevational Figure 1, has its projections or star points arranged in alternating position from those on the first wheel V, thus effecting its expanding action on the sheet in intermediate or halfway position as regards the strands in the first row. Similarly when the third wheel X begins action on the third series of strands, its star wheel points again correspond in position to those on the first wheel V, while the projections on the fourth wheel Y in turn correspond in position to those on the second wheel IV. Vere sufficient of these expanding units shown to correspond with the initially unexpanded sheet of metal it would be necessary to show, instead of the four ribbon or strand widths shown, a sheet correspondingly wide before it has been expanded, in other Words extending roughly two-thirds of the way across plan view of the complete machine shown in Figure The principle of operation is the same, however, regardless of the number of strands, in each case involving an alternating of the star wheel expander-s as shown in the first and third, and second and fourth, positions in Figures 1 and 2.

The expandings action of the several star wheel members upon the slitted metal sheet not only effects a great broadening of the finished lath element, as contrasted with the width of the metal sheet as fed into the machine, but, While the operation is in progress, results in pushing the expanded edge of the sheet laterally so that it gradually bends over and hangs down over the side of the machine, to more or less of a right angled position relatively to the still unexpanded part of the sheet. And, al though difiicult to emphasize this in the drawings, I find it preferable to set the axes of the shafts of the several star wheel units at an angle of about two degrees variance from true perpendicularity to the longitudinal axis of the machine, in order to provide and compensate for the allotted width of the individual strands of metal. The slitted sheet as fed to the star wheel expanding Lmits travels at an angle from true perpendicularity to the lengthwise extent of the machine as a whole, being guided thus by the engagement of its remote lateral edge, that is, the portion acted upon last by the star wheel expanders against the guide J which is illustrated in end sectional elevation in Figure 3 and whose position is indicated by dot and dash line in plan Figure 2.

Since the slitting and spreading action upon the originally plain and uncut sheet has such a great influence upon its ultimate width as between the time it is introduced into the guide l3 and the time it emerges as completed lath unit, it has heretofore been thought necessary to positively and extere nally seize a corner or lateral edge of the sheet as it proceeds through whatever slitting and expanding mechanism is employed, in order to exercise a lateral pull upon the sheet. This has proved both clumsy and unsatisfactory in other respects as well, whereas in my improved construction the action of the complementarily positioned sets of rollers themselves is suiiicient to act for all handling of the sheet which may be needed subsequent to the time of its introduction, either manually or automatically, into the end of the guide slot B; and since each roller works in turn upon a single Elli lle i partly severed ribbon of the sheet metal, the proper expanding and deformation of these sections takes place successively and with due regard to what has already been Worked upon and what still remains to be expanded.

What I claim is:.

1. In combination with a rotatable slitting member having arranged on its periphcry a plurality of rows of cutting pro ections, the units of each row being positioned in staggered relation to 4 those on either side, a plurality of rotatable deforming members, the active peripheral portion of each of which is adapted to act upon the slitted ribbon portion of the sheet which is caused to travel past it in diagonal sequence relatively to the true transverse extent of the sheet and of the slitted portions thereof, thereby successively subjecting the longitudinally slitted strands in the sheet to deforming action.

2. In combination with a plurality of rotatable shafts spacedly aligned in substantially parallel relation, slitting means 1. carried 011 one of said shafts adjacent one the end thereof, in position to act upon a sheet fed into the operative range of its periphery, and a plurality of series of expanding members carried on the other shafts adjacent their respective ends though in successively staggered distance therefrom, adapted to act successively upon longitudinal rows of slitted ribbon portions of the sheet from one side thereof to the other as the sheet successively progresses into the range of the several members, thereby effecting the desired expansion of the entire width of the slitted area. of the sheet laterally thereof as it attains the end of its predetermined path of travel through the machine.

3. The combination, with a holding frame and suitable feed rollers, of a plurality of substantially parallel rotatable sheet-treating members, the first of which has its periphery in the form of a plurality of rows of sheet-slitting projections arranged in staggered relation to those in the adjacent rows, and a plurality of ex panding members adapted to act in successive relation upon the staggered strands of the sheet between the rows of slits from one side of the sheet to the other, thereby effecting an expansion of the component sections of the slitted sheet contemporaneously with the regulated movement thereof through the mechanism to its intended point of delivery.

4:. In combination with a rotatable slitting drum, means for regulatably feeding a lateral edge of a metal sheet into the operative range thereof, a plurality or rotatable expanding members, each adapted to act in timed relation to the others successively upon longitudinally adjacent strands of the sheet from one side thereof to the other, and means for synchronously communicating actuation to the several members from a common source of power.

5. In combination with a plurality of advancing rollers for regulatively effecting the travel of a metal sheet, a slitting member located intermediately of certain of said advancing rollers, and a plurality of successively acting rotatable expanding members positioned in successively staggered relation to one another with respect to their several axes of rotationeach adapted toact upon a different longitudinally positioned series of slitted strands, thereby contemporaneously effecting the gradual lateral projection of the expanded sheet.

6. In combination with a supporting housing, a plurality of series of roller units rotatalbly journaled therein, certain of said units serving to regulatively advance a sheet fed thereto, and another of said units serving to slit the sheet, after its seizure by the first one of said advancing units, in a series of strands arranged in staggered relation to one another transversely of the sheet, and a plurality of expanding members each adapted to act upon a different series of slitted strands as disposed transversely of the sheet, thereby effecting the expansion and gradual lateral ejection of the sheet as its travel lengthwise of the housing progresses.

7. The combination, with a series of rotatable advancing rollers, of a rotatable slitting member adapted to cut a sheet fed into the operative range thereof by certain of said advancing rollers into a plurality of partially severed strands the component rows of which are arranged in staggered relation to one another, and a plurality of expanding elements arranged to act in timed succession to one another upon successive rows of strands from one edge of the sheet to the other to effect the expansion thereof to metal lath form contemporaneously with thegradual lateral ejection of the completed sheet.

In testimony whereof I sign this specication in the presence of two witnesses.

EUGENE S. BRADFORD.

"Witnesses:

WVILLIAM M. SWAN, ALBERT O. WERNER. 

